The Last Phoenix
by efl614
Summary: All I wanted was for the stupid Potion to work. Was that too much to ask? Oh yeah-of course it was.
1. Chapter 1

My tongue stuck out of the side of my mouth as my brow furrowed- I was very deep in concentration and anyone who knew me well enough knew to keep away from me when I was in this… _state_. I was so close to making the connection I had been searching for for four years now. I was so close I could _taste_ it even.

"Come on, work, work," I muttered, not really aware that I was speaking. A curl escaped the messy bun I had thrown my hair into, and I swatted it away, annoyed. The cauldron I leaned over bubbled merrily, as if it knew of the things it offered me. My time-turner swung loosely from the chain around my neck, waiting for its turn in this convoluted piece of magic.

Ever since I was thirteen, and had first learned about the possibility of mixing magical objects with potions to twist the objects purpose, I had become obsessed. However, my obsession had a finer subject: time. I was so… _enthralled_ by the thought of time. It taunted me as I could not seem to get the potion I was working on correct- the potion I had been trying to perfect for four years. I was in my final year at Hogwarts, and soon I would lose this very advanced Potions workspace, a space I desperately needed to make the potion.

I gave a grim smile at that thought. I was just out of time. Oh, the irony. Of course, my little obsession was not helped with my gift. I snorted inwardly at that- some gift it was. I was able to see the history of almost everyone magical, even if I hadn't met them. It wasn't even that I was a Seer. Not many people know of my "gift," but those that do don't even know what to call it. It's never been heard of before. The only one who I haven't been able to see so far is my brother, who is fifteen years older than me. He joked with me, "Thank Merlin for _that_, eh?" and winked at me. I had just rolled my eyes. Luciano had always been the joker of the family.

The cauldron hissed at me as I stirred once, twice, three times counter-clockwise. I narrowed my eyes as the hissing stopped suddenly. That was not supposed to happen. I leaned forward, the Time-Turner dangling forward along with me.

I gasped as I noticed a piece of parchment in the cauldron. My first reaction was horror- my potion! My beautiful, beautiful potion! Then, the reaction turned to my strong focus which I was known for. There was writing on the parchment, and I tried to read the scribbled, black, writing.

_The Order needs the Lost Phoenix, the one who went up in flames. _

Well, what the hell did that mean? The Order of the Phoenix had disbanded almost twenty years ago, and they had never had a _Lost_ Phoenix, had they? I should know. As I tried to decipher the message, my Time-Turner came lose, and slipped off the chain and splashed into the potion. Shit shit shit! The expletives barely registered before my potion exploded, and I felt myself being thrown across the room.

Not good. It was especially not good that I seemed to be falling down now, rather than vertically, as I should. I tried to open my eyes but found it impossible as air rushed around me. Another flash of white light, and I landed with a bang on the floor. Luckily, there was a plush green carpet to stop my fall. I rolled my eyes at that. Then being ever the Gryffindor, I exclaimed, "What the fuck?"

My senses kicked in as I felt the distinguished rush of air of a spell zooming towards me, I threw up my shield nonverbally, not really thinking about it. Ugh, just what I needed. I was in this foreign place, and now some unknown witch or wizard was throwing curses at me. I had been in worse situations, definitely, but I so hated fighting. It had been a large part of my upbringing, but still.

I glanced down and almost groaned in my increasing frustration. I had a large gash in my side, and it was nothing I couldn't fix but I knew it would add another scar to my growing collection. I brushed my free hand over the cut, performing the spell in my head to seal it. I smirked as I took in my attacker, noticing his wide eyes at my… magical prowess.

However, it was my turn for surprise, and I swear my eyes almost bugged out of my head as I saw the man in front of me. I would recognize him anywhere- and besides, I knew just about everything about him. There, in all his blonde-haired, pale-faced glory, stood Lucius Malfoy.

He was so… young! My mind whirred as I thought of the possible situations I was in. I could only think of one, given my activities before I wound up in this hallway. I had gone back in time. My scholarly side was very excited at this prospect, but my realistic side was not so optimistic. I didn't know which one I should let win; after all, this was Lucius Malfoy, and who knew where he was at this point in his life. I decided I had no personal issue with him, and lowered my shield cautiously.

Reality hit and I let the excited side win. I felt a wide smile slip onto my face, and I could feel the scream building up slowly. There it was! "Ahh! I can't believe this!" I ran over to the now wary looking Lucius Malfoy. "Look at you! You're so… I don't know- young!" I placed my hands on this stranger's face, testing to see if he was actually real. He tensed, but to my surprise, he did not push me away. Instead, his grey eyes just bore into mine. I could see his pride there, but also a fair amount of shock. I just giggled at that. I had travelled back! Fate had done something in my favor!

My excitement could not be contained, and I placed a kiss on each of Lucius' cheeks, as was custom in my Italian household."What year is it?" I breathed, close to his face. His brow furrowed in confusion at that and answered, "It is the year 1995. Who are you? How have you breached my wards? How did you perform such magic at such a young age?" Boy, he sure was full of questions- questions I didn't have time for.

"Nineteen ninety-five, you say?" I quickly did the calculations in my head. "But of course! The Phoe-" I stopped short, remembering who I was with. I glanced at the Death Eater. "So, there are wards on your manor? Ha, we'll see about that." Before he could even splutter any sort of response, I undid the wards in the hallway only and apparated away. The last thing I saw of the cold man was him reaching towards me as if to grab me. I cackled at that.

I appeared in a very ordinary looking neighborhood, still grinning at the thought of anyone being able to catch me before I made a getaway. I hadn't allowed that to happen since I was eleven, and that almost cost me my life, along with Luciano's. I was sure to never let it happen again. I contemplated my magical career up to this point. Yes, I was a lot more advanced than most people my age. However, that was only out of the urging of my parents. I rolled my eyes. I loved them dearly, but they were so paranoid sometimes.

I belonged to the Pureblood family Caccia, originating from the hills of Tuscany. My family was very wealthy and had many precious magical items. Some I was not so sure how we had come by them. Well, it attracted a lot of unwanted visitors, and I always guessed there was something more to the story than my parents had told me. They started my training young, after my first show of magic as age four. I had physical training, magical training, and Muggle training. I needed to know how to respond to any kind of situation. I had been involved in about five attacks by the time I was eleven. It was then I put my foot down and said I would go to Hogwarts, the school in England that I had heard so much about.

The week before I was set to go, a man somehow breached our wards, as strong as they were. Although I was very advanced for my age, I was unable to throw him off. My brother had not been far behind, desperate to save his little sister. My heart warmed at that thought. _"Aurora!" He screamed, his face covered in dirt and blood, his arm outstretched toward me. The evil man who had me laughed evilly and whisked me away._ No, I mustn't think about that night right now. I have more pressing matters to attend to.

I continued down the street that was already familiar to me even though I had never been here myself. I stopped suddenly, realizing I was doing what I _always_ do- rushing into situations without thinking. I forced myself to sit on the sidewalk. Fortunately, it had been a weekend and I had been wearing my regular clothes. I didn't feel like dealing with the looks from Muggles right now.

"_Merda!_" I cursed in my first language, which sometimes happens, although less often now. I barely have a trace of an accent even. Okay, I need to think. It is 1995. Early summer, by looks of things. Voldemort has just returned. Harry Potter is no doubt sitting in his room, brooding. He hasn't run into the dementors yet, that comes later this summer. I need to stop that from happening.

Satisfied with that plan, sketchy though it may be, I pushed up from the sidewalk. I held my wand nonchalantly so as not to attract attention. Because there are so many people here, I think snidely. I glance over at the park to my left. With a jolt, I see a boy with jet-black hair, sitting on the swings, looking at the ground. I sneak up next to him.

"Is there something on the ground that you can see that I can't?" I ask, grinning as he jumps. He looks over at me, confusion bursting through his striking green eyes. I guess my gift was pretty spot on- I would know those eyes anywhere.

"No?" he responds, posing it as a question. I slip languidly into the swing next to him. "Hmm. One would think there was something interesting going on there, what with you staring." Harry flashed me a ghost of a smile.

"I'm Harry," he said, sticking out his hand. I nodded wisely. "Indeed you are." I shook his hand, and my grin widened as I noticed his increased confusion.

"Do we know each other from somewhere?" he asked, abandoning his indifferent tone that he had managed to hold up until now. I shook my head.

"No, but I know _you_. My name is Aurora, and I'm here to bring you to Sirius and the others. There are more than a few people who would like to see you dead, as I'm sure you know full well of. And to prove that I'm not one of those people, I'll swear on my wand that I am being honest here in what I'm saying. I know it is a lot to ask, but will you trust me on this?"

Harry looked to be having an internal dilemma, but, being the trusting boy he was, took my hand. I gave him no time to prepare for the side-along apparition he was about to experience. It was best one didn't have time to worry about it before they actually did it. Harry spluttered and gasped for air as we arrived across the road from 12 Grimmauld Place. I looked at him and tutted.

"You're too trusting, boy." I grinned as he looked horrified, and I couldn't handle it anymore. I clutched my stomach as I laughed, and Harry's expression soured pretty quickly.

"That is _not_ funny!" he hissed. I sobered up. "Oh, you're right. It most certainly is not funny, and you're just lucky I wasn't an undercover Death Eater trying to kill you." The boy had the decency to look slightly abashed. I just grabbed his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "It's okay." I nodded at him, and he gave a slight nod back.

We walked up to the house, which I guess opened for me because I knew how to get in already and the time had messed with the Fidelius charm when it came to me? I did not have time to ponder the minute effects that this time travel had done to me at this point in time, however, and I turned my attention to the muffled talking from down the hall.

I could distinguish a few voices, but I didn't think the whole Order was there right now. I pushed the door lightly, and it swung wide open. I hadn't really thought about this part of the plan as of yet, and didn't know quite what to say as five pairs of eyes shot towards Harry and I.


	2. Chapter 2

Hmm. Well, this certainly was an awkward situation. I didn't technically know any of these people, and here I was, with Harry Potter no less. I cleared my throat as my eyes flicked from Sirius, Remus, to Severus, Molly, and finally, they rested on Dumbledore. He seemed to be trying to figure something out, while the others just had various stages of shock written on their faces. No one had expected Harry nor did they know who I was. Obviously, Severus was doing the best job of keeping his emotions hidden, as he looked pretty bored. I almost grinned at that, but then I realized that might look a little strange.

"Uh, well…hello." I said. Brilliant. I was just _so_ articulate. I was very excited to see these people because everyone here in my time was dead except for Molly. I was most pleased to see Severus, who I knew very well. At least, I knew his portrait well enough. I should, considering the endless hours we had discussed my Potion among other topics. I had come to love his company despite the fact that he was only a picture. He was staring at me with his piercing gaze and I smiled slightly despite myself.

Finally, Sirius made a move. I knew he would be. He just got up, and walked swiftly over to Harry to give him a huge hug. I was smiling openly now, and I knew I would save this man. He would enjoy the rest of his life. Dumbledore finally spoke up, and I was pretty surprised that it had taken him this long. I had spoken to his portrait on many occasions as well, so it was a little shocking when his voice was not the warm tone I expected it to be.

"Who are you? Where do you come from? Are you a spy for the Dark Lord?" He pointed his wand at me. I was pretty speechless and didn't know what to say, and just held my hands up in front of me as I stumbled back a couple steps. Molly made a scathing sound.

"Really, Albus? She's just a girl, really, I don't think-" Dumbledore cut her off.

"I will ask only once more- who are you?" Dumbledore's usually twinkling, smiling eyes were now hard and full of distrust. What to say, what to say? I wrung my hands frantically for the briefest of moments, and my eyes met the piercing grey eyes of Sirius Black. I was startled at the intensity, and he nodded slightly, ever so slightly, and I knew I could do this, I could tell them.

"My name is Aurora Caccia, and I am not due to be born for another three years." Remus, Molly, and Sirius' mouths popped open, and I tried to keep my eyes away from Remus. It was more than unfair meeting your best friend's father when he never had that opportunity. I swallowed hard at that thought. That would not happen, though, I told myself firmly. It mustn't.

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows, and I saw out of the corner of my eyes Severus pursing his lips. I wondered if he believed me. I desperately wanted him to, as he was the person I most trusted in this time period, besides Dumbledore, who wasn't very pleased with me at the moment.

"So, you're from the future? What year exactly? And how have you come here?" I took a deep breath, trying to clear my thoughts.

I was usually quick with words, especially in a stressful situation, but words were hard to come by right now. I was still trying to wrap my head around the fact that I had travelled back _twenty years_. My old life (for that is what it is now, nothing more than an alternate reality) was gone because, frankly, I knew of no way to travel forward in time. I had yet to figure that out. I wanted to bang my head on a wall for sheer frustration. If only I wasn't so slow, and had figured out the potion in time! But no, "if only's" were a waste of time and pointless to even think about. If that had happened, I wouldn't have still been working on the potion and would have never gotten that message, etc etc.

"Well, yes, I am from the future," I said, almost rolling my eyes. I completely loathed saying the obvious as it was a waste of time, and I knew just how precious that was. I swear I saw Severus smirk as if he knew just where my thoughts were. I pushed that thought away and brought myself back to reality.

"I was in my final year at Hogwarts, and it was May of 2015. My birthday is July 1st, so I'll be eighteen then. I'm actually closer to about twenty, though," I mutter this last part, and Dumbledore frowns.

"What do you mean by that?" I sigh. This was going to take a while.

"Well, I guess I should start from the beginning."

Finally, finally, I could rest my head. I had spent a good three hours explaining to those crazy Order members plus Harry my situation. I explained from the beginning; my aptitude of magic and the heavy training I received since I was just a child, my Hogwarts experience, the start of my fascination with time and mixing magical objects and potions to twist the object's purpose. Severus had been particularly interested in that, and was impressed when I told him of all the time we had spent together in the Headmaster's office. He didn't often find a student he could relate to and I think he really started to look at me then as if I had something worthwhile to offer. I then explained my age deal: I had been trying to figure out my potion for so long and had used my Time-turner for short periods of time so _many_ times since Third Year that I was probably closer to twenty by now.

Once I said that, Sirius winked at me obviously, and I blushed furiously. Severus just scowled at that, and Remus pretended to frown although I knew he was laughing inside. Fortunately, Molly didn't notice, or else who knows how she'd react. Dumbledore's eyes just twinkled as if he knew something, and I didn't like that look at all. Crazy old man.

Dumbledore had reprimanded me for acting without the Order's knowledge and bringing Harry here. I argued that he would have gotten in trouble with the Ministry and that he wasn't a child anymore: he had a right to be involved in a future that was all for _him_. Besides, I said, waving a dismissive hand, this would all be over a lot sooner now that I was here as I knew where all the Horcruxes were. Dumbledore had frozen and everyone's eyes snapped towards him. It would have almost been comical if not for the seriousness of the situation. Then that lead me to explaining just _how_ I knew that. It took a while to describe my "gift."

After I finished, Sirius barked out, "So you know most of our history, each and every one of us?" I raised my eyes from my wand which I was twirling delicately between my fingers. My eyes met his once more, and I was still startled at the color of them. I had seen them many times through my gift, sure, but they were just so full of life and emotion. I felt as if we could have a conversation just through our eyes alone. I nodded. "That is correct." No point beating around the bush.

Sirius just started to laugh, though. "Well, if that hasn't scared you off yet, then I don't know what will." Remus grinned, and slowly, the others joined in. Severus spared a smirk and I smiled back at him.

I looked up in the darkness of my room as I thought about all that had happened since I woke up that morning. I realized with a jolt that my brother was only twelve years old right now. I grinned at that thought. I was still really confused as to how I had wound up here but ah, well, I would have loads of time to figure it out.

Dumbledore had decided that I would be starting my seventh year this year, and I groaned at that. I did not look forward to doing my seventh year almost all over again, but I knew it made sense. He wanted me close, and, he reasoned, I would have full access to the Potions room. Severus seemed okay with that, and I agreed under one condition: I am allowed to leave Hogwarts when I needed to and that I could attend the Order meetings. Dumbledore agreed, much to the shock of Molly Weasley. She and him argued about it for ages while the rest of us just watched until I finally stepped in and told her firmly that this was my decision. Sirius clapped his hand on the table and grinned at me. I smirked back and decided that I liked this time period.

Since I have started my study of time, I have been a firm believer that if Fate has decided to send a human back, then that person has the responsibility to change the world for the better. They can not worry about the timeline, as it is nothing besides an alternate reality now, and there's no point thinking about "what's supposed to happen." What is supposed to happen will happen regardless if you're there or not, and you might as well prove yourself useful.

I had so much more to think about, but could feel my eyelids drooping heavily. I reluctantly gave in to my body's exhaustion and fell into a deep sleep. I did not dream.

The next morning came way too fast, in my opinion. I was basically dragged out of my room by Sirius, who was in his animagus form. I am a complete night person, and I do not appreciate my sleep being interrupted. It's bad enough during the school year, let alone when I'm on summer vacation. I groaned as he slobbered all over my face. "Ughh!" I cried, once I figured out what was going on. I threw my arms in front of my face, but to no avail. My covers disappeared and I curled up into a ball to conserve what was left of my heat.

Harry came into the room, laughing. "Come on, sleepy head, get up! He poked my forehead, and I swatted him away. I groaned once more. "Yeah, yeah, I'm up. I'm up!" I muttered darkly, before glaring at the two boys, one of them still a dog.

"How is it possible you're _this_ cheery this early in the morning?" I asked Harry. He rolled his eyes and dropped his arm good-naturedly across my shoulders.

"You do realize it's almost noon, don't you?" Harry laughed at my expression. What? Did he have a point or something? We walked down to the kitchen with Sirius trotting behind us. When we reached our destination, Sirius transformed back to his human form. "As so the sleeping beauty lives!" He exclaimed melodramatically. I sighed. I opened my mouth to give back a retort, but it died on my lips as I saw the huge brunch that was prepared and waiting at the table. My stomach growled and I gave Sirius a reproachful look but said nothing.

Suddenly, I noticed a slowly moving creature through the doorway. "Kreacher!" I called. The house elf looked up with a scowl, and I smiled nicely at him. "Hello, my name is Aurora." I had always been upset by this part of the story; how Sirius had been betrayed by this elf merely because he had failed to give him the proper attention and care. Sirius scowled.

"Aurora, don't bother with him, he's a nasty little bugger-" I cut him off by holding up my hand to stop him. "No, he's not." I said firmly.

"He is a loyal house elf and deserves the proper respect! It's not his fault his masters may not have had the best of ideals. If you only treated him right, he might come to treat you as he did your mother! And who knows, it might just cost you your life! Oh, wait, that's right- I know!" I said sarcastically. Sirius paled.

"You can't possibly be serious." He looked at Kreacher as if seeing him for the first time. Kreacher, on the other hand, was looking between me and Sirius with confusion pinching his small features. I rolled my eyes.

"Yes, you're right. How silly of me." I turned to walk away. If there was one thing I could not tolerate, it was the mistreatment of people or any creature for no reason. It was not Kreature's fault that he had had a Pureblood fanatic as his master. All he knew was that she had treated him with care, and he loved her for that.

A hand in my own stopped me. "No, Aurora, wait. I am sorry. Obviously you wouldn't joke about such a thing. I will try to do better in the future." I looked into his eyes, searching for any sign of deception and found nothing. They told the truth, and I smiled brightly.

"Thank you. It's for the best, and you'll see: he's a good house elf, aren't you Kreacher?" Kreacher looked up at me confused for another heartbeat, but then decided he liked me. "Of course, miss, if there is anything Kreacher can ever get you, anything, you just need to call." I gave him a kind smile, and thanked him. He bowed and gave Sirius one last, long look before snapping away.

I finally- finally!- was able to sit down to the food. I was starving! In my distraction last night, I hadn't had dinner, and besides, there was just too much going on to think about eating. Mrs. Weasley claimed I was too skinny, and I tried to explain to her than I ate more than five teenage boys put together, I just had a fast metabolism. She clearly didn't believe me but said nothing more on the matter.

Dumbledore told me that this information would stay between only those that I've told, along with Hermione and Ron, which he added after Harry looked a little uneasy. I was glad for that, as those three were in this together. Harry would now be involved in the Order's meetings, and he needed to be told of the prophecy. Dumbledore was completely against this at first, but I whispered vehemently that his refusal to tell Harry anything was going to cause a lot more trouble than it's worth. He finally gave in.

Dumbledore, Sirius, and I called Harry down to the kitchen later that night to talk to him about, well…everything. He looked confused but determined as he sat down across from Dumbledore and I, with Sirius on his right side.

I tucked a curl behind me ear and spoke up. "See, Harry, there's this prophecy…."


	3. Chapter 3

I cleared my throat for the third time. It was kinda hard to tell the almost fifteen year old that he was marked for Death unless he defeated the most powerful Dark wizard out there. It was a _bit_ of a tough situation.

"Well, the Prophecy said that there was going to be a boy born at the end of July to parents who had defied Voldemort three times. This fell to two possibilities: you or Neville Longbottom. Oh, and Professor Dumbledore, you know I think something seriously went wrong when Augusta did some memory charms on him, and that's why he's always so forgetful. Perhaps you should look into that." I looked back at Harry.

"So, as you know, Voldemort picked you. Neville's parents- well, maybe Neville should tell you himself, it's not really my place. On the night that your parents died, and you defeated the Dark Lord, a piece of his soul latched itself onto you. _That's_ why you see things sometimes, through your scar, and that's why only you have the power to destroy him. You need to fully accept death. Death is not something to fear, Harry, and I hope you will understand that someday, if you don't already now."

Dumbledore smiled. "As I've always said, death is but the next great adventure." Harry smiled weakly at that, and I cleared my throat again; maybe that was enough information for one day. The boy needed to think.

"Okay, Harry, that's enough serious talk for one day. We'll pick up the conversation later, but I think you have a lot of thinking to do. Sirius, why don't you show him around the house a bit and then let him be alone for a little while?" I asked, smiling at my shaggy haired friend. I was startled at that realization. I already considered these people my friends, after only two days? Well, it's not like I couldn't trust them- I knew most things about them. I was glad to have them, I firmly decided.

Sirius jumped up, and put an arm around his godson's shoulders. Sirius also would have some thinking to do, as he hadn't known all of that information up until now. I had a feeling he would be up until late hours tonight, complete with Firewhiskey. Maybe I would join him, I thought with a grin.

I shook my head- I was always too Slytherin for my own good. Sure, I was a Gryffindor, but I almost wasn't. Me and the Sorting Hate had a right big argument about that, let me tell you. He told me I was cunning, a Pureblood, and would do well in Slytherin. I told him I didn't like snakes and just didn't like the cold exterior the Slytherins emanated from their table alone. The Hat grumbled a bit more, but finally relented. I couldn't be any happier- I loved my House and my classmates. They were the best friends a girl could ask for.

I thought back fondly of my first night in the large castle. My English was really good, but I had a hard time pronouncing things. I knew what I wanted to say, but when it came out it sounded really bad. When someone asked me to repeat myself for the fifth time, I had burst into tears. I thought I had made a terrible mistake, and this would never work.

Then, to my surprise, a hand slipped into mine, and gave it a reassuring squeeze. I looked up in surprise at a boy with purple hair. He smiled kindly at me, and said, "I understood you. Come on, I'll help you learn how to speak better."

That was when Teddy and I had become best friends, I thought proudly. He was so strong, even at a young age. You just knew by looking at him that he would not be someone to give up easily. He taught me relentlessly, and never got angry. He was very patient, even when I wasn't. I grinned at the many times I had blown stuff up accidentally in my anger. Of course, we were in the Room of Requirement when he gave me lessons, so I couldn't get in any sort of trouble.

It was a slow process, but I got it as the months went by. During the summer break, Teddy invited me to spend time with him at his godfather's house, who was none other than Harry Potter. I outright laughed at that, thinking of little Harry now. The first time I had met Harry, he looked down at me with a wry smile, and said, "So this is the girl Teddy never stops talking about? I guess you weren't lying when you said she was pretty, Ted."

Teddy turned bright red, along with his hair. I laughed, unable to find the situation embarrassing. Teddy's expression was just too perfect. From then on, I spent most of the latter part of my summer break with Teddy, the Potters, and the Weasleys. They were my favorite group of people in the world, not counting Luciano of course. _Of course._

I hadn't realized how lost I was in my own thoughts until a knock on the door startled me back to earth. I called the person in, and Sirius entered, looking weary.

"Harry's asleep," he said. "Care to join me for a drink?" I smiled and nodded, getting up from the bed. Then, ever the graceful one, I tripped over a stray shoe. I caught myself in time, and Sirius just smirked at me and raised an eyebrow. I scowled.

"Don't look at me like that, it happens to the best of us, you know." Sirius just snorted, and I rolled my eyes. He was so immature.

"I dunno, maybe you don't need to join me after all. It seems you're all set." Sirius looked at me seriously (no pun intended whatsoever), but I knew it was all fake. I just pushed past him.

"Are you going to talk the night away or are we going?" I asked scathingly. He just liked teasing too much, and I should bring him down a peg. He just laughed outright, and joined me as we descended to the kitchen.

We stayed up late, talking and drinking, although not too much; I learned that Sirius abhorred being drunk, and I wondered why I never knew that before. It seemed I had been careless in learning about him. I agreed with him. I never liked being in a situation where I wasn't in control. Luciano on the other hand…. I beamed at that thought.

Finally, when we both decided to go to bed, I very seriously thanked him for being strong and such a good friend to everyone, and then gave him a quick kiss on both cheeks. I usually did that to everyone, but I couldn't find a reason that I felt a little jolt each time my lips lightly brushed his cheeks. I blamed it on the alcohol. He stared down at me with his grey eyes, as if he wanted to say something, but then decided against it and swept from the room. I sighed, and waited a moment before I went back to my own room.

Harry had requested that he be left alone for the next day, so I spent some quality time with Remus. He was just as funny and caring as his son, although a bit more serious. I liked him a lot, but I didn't know if I should reveal information to him.

I was still undecided when Remus asked, half-jokingly, "Do you know me in the future then?" He tilted his head, waiting for me to answer. Dammit, I couldn't lie to those I cared about to save my life. I looked up at him guiltily.

"No. But…" I trailed off. I needed to make up my mind!

"But?" Remus prodded gently. I swallowed. There was no use hiding it now.

"I know your son. In fact, he's my best friend in the entire world." I looked up at the man with so many premature wrinkles and gray hairs, and his face lit up.

"I have a son? Well, that's brilliant! But wait, how are you best friends with my son how do you not know-" He broke off, understanding dawning on his face. The happiness that lit his face seconds ago was gone in a flash, replaced with a somber expression.

"You don't know me because there's no _me_ to know." He stated it as if one would state a fact from a History book. I nodded. "But that's not going to happen. You will know your son. That's what I am here for." I smiled at Remus.

"Hey, don't look so down. I promise that that isn't going to happen. However, I need you to promise me something." He looked at me expectantly.

"When that girl comes along, who won't care about your affliction, then you just let her make her own decisions. Don't give up on love. You deserve it, more than most." He looked doubtful.

"Here, do you know Legilimency? Let me show you something." Remus nodded in agreement, and cast the spell nonverbally. I showed him the first encounter his son and I had, and I could feel Remus' joy at seeing the boy.

Remus retreated from my mind carefully, and I said, "See? If you try to deny her, you could lose out on a perfect boy, and I could lose out on my best friend."

Remus was still smiling from the memory, and I doubted he even heard what I said. "Why was his hair purple?" He asked, bemused.

"Oh," I said nonchalantly, "he's a metamorphmagus. Just like his mother." Remus' jaw dropped, immediately making a connection, and before he could respond, I flashed him a grin and ran from the room.

I cackled as I thought of the wheels turning in Remus' head. He must be going crazy right now! I laughed even harder.

"You have an infectious laugh, you know," Sirius said, chuckling. I was startled out of my laughter. I hadn't even seen him standing there in the doorway. I grinned up at the tall man, and said, "Yeah, I've been told. Is that a bad thing?"

Sirius shook his head. "Not at all. It's cute." I blushed, and well, why was he saying this? Things were complicated enough as it was, and ahh, I couldn't deal with it right now. I was just too confused.

"I, er, I should go check on Harry." I stuttered, making a fool of myself. I nearly sprinted from the room and missed Sirius' smirk of triumph.

Well, this was certainly a development. Why did Sirius make me feel this way? I needed to figure it out because I hate not knowing something. Especially when it involved my feelings. However, it could wait- Harry was more important than some slight crush I had on Sirius (which was simply preposterous, I had only known him for a few days, not to mention he was a lot older!). I needed to make sure he was strong.

I knocked lightly on Harry's door. There was some slight shuffling, and Harry opened the door. He looked a bit weary, but welcomed me with a smile. That was a little encouraging.

"Hey, Harry," I said softly. "How are you doing? Do you want to talk?"

Harry opened the door wider, and I took that as an invitation to come in. I looked at his room; it was very tidy. I guess when you have nothing else to do but think you want to occupy yourself by any means.

Harry and I spoke for a while. We avoided the topic that was on both of our minds, but instead, I told Harry all about my adventures at Hogwarts, and he roared with laughter when I told him about the first time I met him. In turn, he told me all about his school years and even though I technically knew about them already, it was still interesting to see things through Harry's eyes and the emotions he felt and all that jazz.

The drawback of my gift was that I could only see things from people's pasts as if it were in a timeline- there's no emotion there, I have no idea what the person is feeling or anything like that. I just know what happened.

There was a knock on the door, and I opened it to find Severus. Harry scowled, and I frowned at the boy. "Yes, Severus?" I asked. I hadn't gotten the chance to talk to him much, and I was glad for my old friend, even if I had only known him as a painting.

"There's a meeting downstairs. Dumbledore requested your presence," Severus drawled. I nodded, smiling. I went to step out before I paused and looked back at Harry, who looked frustrated.

"Nothing to worry about right now, Harry, you just keep doing what you're doing. I'll see you in the morning." Harry snorted at the first part, but seemed a little less vexed.

I was satisfied with that for now, and I turned back to Severus, who was waiting with a sneer. I stuck my tongue out at him, and his look of surprise was pretty funny. I hooked my arm through his, which caused even more surprise.

"What on _Earth_ do you think you're doing?" He snarled; however, he did not pull away. I just grinned up at him.

"Well, we've been friends for so long, but I've never gotten to give you a hug or anything. I'm just really glad you're alive is all." Severus narrowed his eyes as though he didn't trust me, and we continued walking. I wasn't too worried about it.

We walked into the kitchen where everyone was waiting, chatting amicably with each other. My eyes were immediately drawn to Sirius, and I noticed he was frowning. I realized it must have been because of me and Severus' linked arms, and I smirked evilly.

"Thanks for escorting me, Severus," I said clearly, and then reached up to kiss Severus on both cheeks. I don't know who was more shocked- the group sitting at the table or Severus himself. This was turning out great, I thought, suppressing a peal of laughter.

As Severus and I took our seats, I glanced over in Sirius' direction. He was scowling. My plan had worked, I thought triumphantly. I don't even know what I was trying to achieve, but I just tended to like stirring up trouble whenever I could. It got me into trouble a fair amount of times, but it had always been worth it. Teddy called these tendencies my "Slytherin flaws." I always laughed outrageously whenever he said it, even after seven years.

With a pang, I realized just how much I missed my best buddy. We never usually went long without seeing each other, and I realized I might possibly never see my best friend in the same sort of way again if I never got back to my time period, which I highly doubted. Tears threatened to spill at that, and I swallowed hard. I needed to focus! What was wrong with me? I always seemed to think of the wrong things at the wrong time.

Severus was seated to my right, and he looked down at me with what appeared to be concern. I gave him a reassuring smile, but that didn't seem to convince him. He tried to use Legilimency on me, and I let him see where my thoughts had headed. He nodded slightly in understanding. All this happened in only a moment, so no one noticed a thing; everyone was still trying to get organized before we started the meeting up.

I got control over my thoughts as everyone settled down. We all turned toward Dumbledore expectantly, and he began speaking. "Today we are here to talk about an important artifact that must be collected from Bellatrix Lestrange's vault. It is imperative that we get this item. The only problem is getting into the vault. Any ideas?" Dumbledore looked around at the table, and people muttered things to their neighbors.

An older man who I did not know spoke up. "Well, you could present the idea to the minister. He seems so adamant in making sure no one thinks Voldemort is back that he would be very glad that you seemed to drop the matter. That would surely please him." Dumbledore looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Yes, yes, that sounds like an excellent idea. I suppose it may be best not to press him on the Voldemort matter at the moment, based on his later reactions according to Aurora. I will owl him in the morning, and request a meeting. Then, he, Aurora, and I will go down to the vaults. It will be tricky handling the goblins, but there is a certain, convenient law written in there about the vaults of convicts…" Dumbledore trailed off, his eyes gleaming. He was definitely too smart for his own good, I thought. I could only imagine the type of scheming plans he was thinking of right now.

The rest of the meeting went by, and it was pretty small stuff. The actions of former Death Eaters, and all that jazz. I kept catching myself looking at Sirius and studying his face- the defined line of his jaw, the slope of his nose, the way his eyes twinkled when he had something to say…

What have I gotten myself into?


End file.
